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Kholinar is the capital city of the Kholin princedom in Alethkar, Roshar.[1] It was symmetrical in shape, built around enormous stone formations, known as the windblades,[1] because they rose like enormous fins into the air, which were unmistakable even from afar.

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Kholinar is considered one of the Dawncities and sheltered from Highstorms. It is located in Northern Alethkar. It is considered beautiful in part because of the Windblades that jut up in and around the city.

Near the end of the War of Reckoning, Aesudan's negligence and Pai's accusations caused the city to erupt in riots. The Kholinar Wall Guard manages to restore order to the city and exiles all parshman from the city before the first everstorm arrives. Soon after the arrival of the everstorm, the Fused gather the transformed parshmen to Siege Kholinar.

During the siege, Kaladin, Shallan, and Adolin travel to Kholinar with King Elhokar in an attempt to free the city from whatever dark forces seem to be affecting it. They discover a dark cloud over the palace, and witness attacks made by the Fused before entering the city. A Fused attack on the wall is actually what allows them to enter the city, distracting the guards enough for them to push through. The city has fragmented into several factions. Queen Aesudan and the Palace guard control the palace, the Cult of Moments control the Oathgate platform, the Kholinar Wall Guard holds the wall and distributes food, and the rest of the city is split between various lighteye houses.

There were three unmade present in the city during the siege. Sja-anat corrupted a large portion of local spren into twisted versions of themselves, including the spren of the Oathgate. Ashertmarn, the Heart of the Revel, drove many of the nobles of Kholinar into excess and debauchery in an organization known as the Cult of Moments. Queen Aesudan attempted to bond with Yelig-nar by swallowing a gemstone containing it.

The city's defenses and command structure has basically collapsed, but the Kholinar Wall Guard has taken up the defense of the city under the command of Highmarshal Azure, but they are mostly directed outwards towards the Fused. In the city, spren react strongly to any use of stormlight, including spanreeds and soulcasters. This, with the threat of Fused attacks, made it difficult to communicate outside the city. Soulcasting was made possible by metal plates provided by Wit, seemingly made of aluminum, that prevented detection by corrupt spren. A wall guard's single soulcaster was able to keep the guard and much of the city fed.

When Kaladin, Shallan, Adolin, Elhokar, and Azure attempt to retake the Oathgate, a Thunderclast breaches the walls and the Voidbringers break into the city. Elhokar is killed in the assault to retake the Oathgate and Shallan is unable to use the Oathgate to bring reinforcements. They are transported to Shadesmar and the city falls to the Voidbringers.

This is the first time in modern history Kholinar has fallen to an invading force. Under the control of voidbringers, tens of thousands of humans were moved out of the city to work on farms, while singers were moved in. The voidbringers also began taking apart the palace.

The wall is sixty foot tall at its highest point and ten feet deep. There is a guard post every three hundred feet along the wall, large enough to hold a platoon of soldiers. At some points along the wall, the windblades form part of the wall, built in the crevices between the blades.

Windblades

Rock formations made of red, white, and orange strata. Over the centuries, tunnels have been cut into them for quick and discrete passage through the walls.

The Wall Guard was tasked with patrolling the city wall and controlling gate access, but was crippled when most of the high ranking lighteyes disappeared into the Palace after the execution of an ardent and subsequent riots. With no high ranking lighteyes to take charge, a woman calling herself Highmarshal Azure seized control of the Wall Guard and organized them in the defense of the city. With the use of a single Soulcaster used by Ithi and her sister in a room lined with Aluminum provided by Wit, Highmarshal Azure was able to keep the Wall Guard fed and provide a sizeable amount of food to Kholinar.

They recruited any able bodied fighter, using food and redemption to draw volunteers. They recruited Kaladin this way. Their primary focus was defending the wall from Fused raids, letting the city run itself for the most part. They used extra food to stop the other highlords from trying to seize control of the walls.

Kaladin is able to convince High Marshal Azure to lead six hundred of the wall guard to assault the palace.

The City Guard is the main peacekeeping force in the city. During the riots after the execution of Pai, the remaining city guard was recalled to the palace.

After the riots, the Queen recalls the City Guard and the Palace Guard into the palace and anyone who entered never came back out. Many of the original highlords never returned either, leaving the city in chaos. Elhokar and Adolin are able to recruit about a hundred of the highlords and their personal guards to join on the assault.

This is the force tasked with the imitate protection of the royal family in the city and the palace. A portion of the Guards resisted the lure of the Unmade and were locked in a room. While in the room they claimed time seemed to pass differently for them, feeling it has only been a few days not a few weeks from the riots.

The cult is divided into two groups. One group roams the street imitating corrupted spren, and the rest of the members hold feasts on the Monastery Dias. Ashertmarn, the Heart of the Revel, compels them to mindless hedonism. The cult takes new members easily, provided that they can give food. Shallan is able to join the revelers on the Oathgate platform by stealing and distributing food.